Almost £1m of European cash is set to help Essex manufacturers prepare workers for the challenges of an increasingly global marketplace.

Around £900,000 of European Social Fund money is being pumped into the Skills for Change project, developed by Essex County Council's Advancement of Manufacturing and Technology Centre.

The 40 manufacturing companies selected to take part will sit down with AMT Centre experts, explain their business strategy for the next three or four years and work out the skills needed.

The companies will then be directed to one of the 36 workshops the centre is planning on subjects ranging from management skills to information and communication technology.

The two-year project, organised in partnership with Anglia Polytechnic University, Harlow College and the Essex e-Commerce Centre, is expected to get under way in September.

To be eligible, companies have to be in the manufacturing sector, be Essex-based and employ at least 25 people.

For more information call 01245 702400.

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